


Crush

by deathwailart



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Bonding, Crushes, F/F, Mother-Daughter Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-29
Updated: 2014-07-29
Packaged: 2018-02-11 00:07:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2045385
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deathwailart/pseuds/deathwailart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shannon and Leandra bond over Shannon's visible from the Fade crush on Isabela</p>
<p>Written for the 30 day drabble challenge: crush</p>
            </blockquote>





	Crush

They see less and less of one another when they finally regain the estate and Shannon signs her name with a flourish on the deed which isn't really how it's supposed to work. But there's so much more to everything now when the Arishok and Viscount both seem to expect her to be involved when she never actually signed up for this and the only jobs that don't actively annoy her or threaten to drown her under the sickening weight of expectation and obligation are the ones that her friends need help with. She drops everything for them because even when they're angry or hurt at her or just because sometimes you _need_ someone to be angry or hurt with, sometimes that hurt just needs to come out because if it doesn't come out you'll explode. She never holds that against them because she's wanted to do that herself but it was never allowed growing up and she's used to swallowing it down. Which isn't to say she likes it but she doesn't know how to do anything else.  
  
A new home and safety makes things easier even if she wishes Bethany had been allowed this too, pretty dresses and the sort of protection they never had during their lives and instead she's bones back in Ferelden, they couldn't even give her a real funeral. Carver should have been allowed to pretend to a nobleman and get bored and fall in love with a wonderful young woman or a handsome young man, get a mabari of his own instead of growing harder and stronger fighting Darkspawn. But at least mother isn't in a hovel because even when money was tight back when it was all of them, the Hawkes against the whole world, they had a proper home that didn't smell like damp, a home they kept clean with fresh flowers even if they were just pretty weeds they plucked out of the garden (and they always kept a little garden, at least enough for healing supplies) and it was a home.  
  
The estate is like that but so much more, this huge house Shannon can get lost in and she doesn't really know how anyone can need so much room, wondering if they just buy things to make it seem less empty. But Kirkwall is full of Orlesians so they probably do just that.  
  
Eventually she manages to get a day where she puts the word out through Varric that unless the city is burning down and the Veil is tearing itself open, she's not to be disturbed. It's going to be just her and her mother come hell or high water where Shannon cooks them a nice simple meal and they eat together and talk and laugh the way they used to when they saw each other. It's not that they don't talk but so often their conversations – or the ones Shannon remembers – have involved the past, the people they've lost, the life they left behind. They've got fancier ingredients for this meal and Shannon dresses up fancier than usual to match mother who wears beautifully tailored gowns and some of the tightness around his eyes has left her and she laughs more than Shannon remembers since father died.  
  
"Oh darling I've missed this," she says when they share some fancy wine – confiscated but good wine is good wine and Shannon hasn't quite restocked their expansive cellar yet. "It's nice to see you."  
  
"You see me," Shannon counters although lately she's been spending a lot more time out of the house, particularly in the evenings, creeping back in the small hours. "In passing perhaps," she amends with a smile.  
  
"I understand – you're allowed to have a life Shannon, after all you did to get us a home again. Besides, you have your pirate girl, don't you?"  
  
Shannon chokes on her wine and well, Isabela _does_ come to the estate an awful lot and perhaps she does mention her more than almost everyone else she spends her time with in Kirkwall. "My pirate girl?"  
  
"The way you look at her whenever she invites herself over – don't worry, I've smoothed it over with Bodahn so he doesn't worry about her breaking in – well, I _was_ young once." She winks and Shannon puts the wine down so she doesn't spray it everywhere.  
  
"It's...I don't know what it is yet..." She bites her lip and looks down, poking at the remainder of her dinner as she sighs because she's trying to respect Isabela's boundaries and how she feels about love and Shannon herself isn't exactly good with feelings.  
  
"It's just good to know you have someone, someone you get to look at like the sun rises and sets with them. Your father used to look at me like that." Leandra pauses to take a sip of her wine, reaching out to set a soft hand over Shannon's, squeezing gently. "I want you to be happy darling, if she's who makes you happy then be a little brave and be a little foolish, you wouldn't be here if your father and I hadn't done that."  
  
It's something to think about at least as Shannon changes the subject because her stomach is full of butterflies in the good way but it's hard to talk when she call feel herself blushing and when later she shouts that she's 'just heading out for a quick drink' she has to pretend not to hear her mother's knowing laughter.  
  
Maybe it's not love, not just yet, but whatever it is, she's going to follow her mother's advice as she takes the quickest route to the Hanged Man where Isabela greets her with a warm embrace and keeps an arm around her all night.


End file.
